Question 1

When should I start the preparation for the WU BBE entrance exam?

Accepted Answer

The sooner, the better. Although it’s possible to work through the materials in a few weeks if you dedicate enough time each week, beginning earlier makes the process smoother. You’ll have the flexibility to dive deeper into challenging topics and revisit them if needed. This proactive approach helps you feel well-prepared and confident on exam day, which significantly boosts your chances of joining WU Vienna.

Question 2

I am very good in maths, economics, and English – do I even need to prepare?

Accepted Answer

Unlike traditional classroom courses, the BBE Insider course offers flexible, on-demand classes and personalized support. You won’t just receive theoretical knowledge but practical tools and strategies designed to give you the highest probability of success in the BBE exam.

Question 3

What’s the success rate of students that take your program?

Accepted Answer

Students who start at least four weeks before the exam reach a 51% acceptance rate, compared to the overall 7% admission rate. This underscores the advantage of a structured, exam-focused approach in helping you secure your spot at WU Vienna.

Question 4

Scoring system for the entrance exam: In multiple-choice questions where more than one option can be correct, is partial credit possible?

Accepted Answer

The WU BBE exam awards points for each correct statement you select. For instance, if a question has five statements and you correctly identify four, you earn points for those four correct answers. There’s no penalty for incorrect or missing selections, so you can accumulate partial credit based on what you genuinely know.

Question 5

What topics are covered and how should I prepare?

Accepted Answer

English Language Skills: Grammar, business-related vocabulary, and reading comprehension.

Business & Economics Knowledge: Basic concepts from independent literature study.

Mathematics: Problems comparable to the Austrian school-leaving exam.

Question 6

What happens after I pass the exam?

Accepted Answer

Successful applicants receive an admission offer and, upon acceptance, complete:

Submission of original documents (in person or by post).

Personal enrollment at the Study Service Center.

Payment of tuition fees and Students’ Union dues.
Enrollment for the winter semester typically runs from July 10 to September 5.

Question 7

How do I register for the BBE Entrance Exam?

Accepted Answer

1. Online Self-Assessment (OSA): Complete between March 3 and June 2, 2026. 2. Entrance Exam Registration: After passing the OSA, you automatically receive access to sign up for the Written Online Exam.
Make sure you meet all admission criteria (secondary school leaving certificate, English proficiency B2, etc.) before registering.

Question 8

What is the BBE Entrance Exam?

Accepted Answer

The BBE (Business and Economics) Entrance Exam is part of the annual selection procedure for applicants to the Bachelor's Program in Business and Economics at WU Vienna. It tests English language skills, elementary economics and business knowledge, as well as mathematics at the level of the Austrian “Standardized Competence-Oriented Written School-Leaving Examination.”

Question 9

Can I choose another exam date or reschedule?

Accepted Answer

No. The BBE Entrance Exam has a single date (June 30, 2026) and start intervals; no exceptions or alternative dates are possible. 
WU (Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien)

Question 10

How long is the exam and what format does it follow?

Accepted Answer

The BBE Entrance Exam runs for 2 hours (120 minutes) and is conducted in person in Vienna. It consists exclusively of multiple-choice (true/false) questions covering the three subject areas.

Question 11

When does the BBE Entrance Exam take place?

Accepted Answer

The online exam is held once a year in the summer. For 2026, the Written Entrance Exam will take place on June 30, 2026, with two start intervals at 10:00 a.m. and 10:02 a.m. (CEST).

Question 12

What is the percentage weighting per component, and is it constant?

Accepted Answer

Historically the exam had **33 tasks**, each with 5 statements, so **165 statements in total**, split **13 Mathematics / 10 Economics / 10 English** over the old 2.5-hour format. By points, that worked out to roughly **40% Mathematics, 40% Economics, 20% English**. It is **not constant**: the exact split changes from year to year, and with the 2026 exam shortened to 2 hours we expect proportionally fewer tasks. Treat 40 / 40 / 20 as a guide, not a guarantee.

Question 13

Are all chapters covered per component, and how are they distributed (one per chapter or otherwise)?

Accepted Answer

The exam generally draws on all components, but the weighting shifts from year to year, so there is no fixed distribution to rely on. Coverage within a component is uneven too: some subtopics appear as a full block of five statements, others in just one or two. The safest approach is to prepare every chapter rather than betting on which will come up. In general, mathematics and economics make up approximately 80% of the total points, and the language part the remaining 20%.

Question 14

Can we navigate freely between components and questions, or must each component be finished first?

Accepted Answer

You have full freedom. All questions and components are available at once, so you can jump between them in any order, go back to earlier questions, and split your time however you like. Nothing is handed out or collected component by component. It is effectively one open booklet for the whole exam.

Question 15

How are point ties resolved, now that the OSA is no longer a determining factor?

Accepted Answer

We do not yet have confirmed information on how point ties are broken now that the OSA no longer counts as a determining factor. Once WU publishes the official rule, we will update this answer. If it is relevant to your situation, ask WU directly.

Question 16

What is the order of the components (Math, Economics, English)?

Accepted Answer

There is no fixed order. All three components are open at the same time, and you can move freely between them and back to earlier questions across the full time, so you choose the order yourself. For a recommended sequence, see our strategy answer (we suggest Economics, then English, then Mathematics).

Question 17

How does the point system work, and are points deducted for wrong answers?

Accepted Answer

WU uses a **partial-credit system**, and the maximum point value is shown separately for each question. You earn the full maximum only if you select **all** the correct options and **none** of the incorrect ones.

On a normal task with several correct options:

- **+ maximum points for that task / (number of correct options)** for each correct option you select
- **- maximum points for that task / (number of false options)** for each incorrect option you select
- the pluses and minuses are netted for that question.

So yes, wrong selections cost points, but only within that same task, and a task can never score below zero. A bad question can drop to 0, but it cannot pull down points earned elsewhere. Two special cases: a task with only one correct answer is all-or-nothing (any wrong mark scores 0), and a task with only one false option deducts half the maximum if you tick that false option.

Full walkthrough and worked examples: the grading video ([youtu.be/C4ogTs4ZPE8](http://youtu.be/C4ogTs4ZPE8)) and WU's official partial-credit PDF ([link](https://www.wu.ac.at/fileadmin/wu/h/programs/bachelor/bbe/Aufnahmeverfahren/Partial_Credit_System_BBE.pdf)).

Question 18

Is the maximum point value printed next to every question?

Accepted Answer

Yes, the maximum point value is shown next to every question, so you can always see what each one is worth.

Question 19

What is the expected split between reading comprehension, vocabulary, and grammar (English)?

Accepted Answer

There is no fixed split, and it can change from year to year. As a rough guide, **reading comprehension usually carries the most points and grammar the least**, with vocabulary in between, so prepare all three rather than relying on a set ratio.

Question 20

Are there breaks between modules?

Accepted Answer

No. The exam runs in one continuous block, there are no breaks between the components.

Question 21

Are the listed calculators allowed, and which features must they not have?

Accepted Answer

WU publishes the official list of permitted calculators, along with the features an approved model must **not** have. Only calculators that meet those specifications may be used, so check your model against the current list before exam day: [WU calculator list 2026 (PDF)](https://www.wu.ac.at/fileadmin/wu/h/programs/bachelor/bbe/Aufnahmeverfahren/WU_Taschenrechner_2026_en.pdf).

Question 22

Is the change from 2.5h to 2h confirmed, what was the reason, and did the structure change?

Accepted Answer

Yes. This year the exam lasts **2 hours**, down from 2.5 hours in previous years. The reason for the change has not been communicated, but the overall structure stays largely the same (same components and question style). The main practical effect is tighter pacing, so build that into your practice.

Question 23

How does the partial-credit (negative-marking) system work, and should the strategy change?

Accepted Answer

What is often called negative marking is simply part of WU's partial-credit system. Usually, every **incorrect** option you select subtracts **max / (number of false options)**, while every **correct** option adds **max / (number of correct options)**. The two are netted only within that question, and no question can score below zero, so a wrong tick can cost you points on that question, but it can never drag down points earned on others. There are two special cases explained in the YouTube video below.

**Should your strategy change? A little:**

- **Do not tick statements you are only guessing on.** A wrong mark now subtracts points within the question, so blind ticking is risky.
- **Do tick statements you are reasonably confident about.** Leaving a correct one unselected only forgoes points; it is not penalised.
- **Be most careful on high-value tasks (economics),** where each wrong mark costs more in absolute terms.
- Because every question is floored at zero, the real risk is leaving points on the table, not a global penalty. Attempt every single task.

Worked examples: the grading video ([youtu.be/C4ogTs4ZPE8](http://youtu.be/C4ogTs4ZPE8)) and WU's official partial-credit PDF ([link](https://www.wu.ac.at/fileadmin/wu/h/programs/bachelor/bbe/Aufnahmeverfahren/Partial_Credit_System_BBE.pdf)).

Question 24

Are all questions worth the same number of points?

Accepted Answer

No. The maximum points vary by component and by task. In the official scoring, **economics tasks usually carry a higher maximum than maths tasks**, so a fully correct economics question is worth more than a maths one (this can change year to year). Within each task, partial credit is scaled to that task's maximum, and the maximum is shown next to every question.

Practical takeaway: treat the higher-value tasks (economics) as higher-stakes. Both the reward for a correct answer and the within-question penalty for a wrong one scale with the maximum. Any negative marking applies only inside a single question, never across the whole exam.

Question 25

Do we mark only the options we think are correct, or must every statement be explicitly marked true or false?

Accepted Answer

You select the statements you judge to be correct. The exam's own instructions will spell out the exact method on the day, and it will work very much like the exam simulation you have practised on, so there will not be any surprises.

Question 26

Can a question have 0 correct statements, and does the number of correct statements vary from 1 to 5?

Accepted Answer

Every question has **between 1 and 5 correct statements, never zero**. So there is always at least one statement to select, and in principle all five can be correct.

Question 27

How are the points distributed?

Accepted Answer

Across the three components, points are typically split roughly **40% Mathematics, 40% Economics, 20% language (English for BBE)**, so language is the lightest. This is not fixed and can shift from year to year, so treat it as a rough guide. Within a single question, points are then awarded statement by statement under the partial-credit system, see the scoring answers for the detail.

Question 28

Are pens and blank scrap paper allowed, and is the blank paper provided?

Accepted Answer

Bring your own pens. Blank scratch paper is normally provided at the exam, so you should not need to bring your own. As the definitive list of what is provided and permitted comes from WU, always check their official instructions before exam day.

Question 29

Is the exam in person or online, and will the paper exam follow a similar layout to the simulation?

Accepted Answer

This year the exam is **in person, written on paper**. There is no online or WISEflow-style interface anymore. The question format and layout stay very close to what you practise in the simulations, so your preparation transfers directly to the real exam. The exam takes place on **30 June 2026**. This video shows what the exam papers look like: [youtu.be/MQUF3mfaKQg](http://youtu.be/MQUF3mfaKQg).

You can also print out the answer sheet and use it during the exam simulations. You can access the PDF file on the exam page.

Question 30

If I am unsure of an answer, is it better to guess or to skip the question?

Accepted Answer

Never leave a whole question completely blank. Always give it a shot. There is a floor of zero points per task, so if you skip it or get everything wrong the number stays the same. At the same time, you could get lucky and guess something right, earning you points.

The exam only deducts points within a question for incorrect marks, so only select the ones you are reasonably sure about. Again, a question can never score below zero, so you should always give it a try.

Question 31

Has BBE changed its scoring system?

Accepted Answer

Yes. All entrance exams for bachelor degrees at WU Vienna now use the partial-credit (Teilpunkte) system.

Entrance Exam - FAQ